Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1887-12-02

found himself in the unfortunate predica-
ment OF having lost both his land and his
money, generally without the means to
enter into costly litigation with a power
home, the expenditure and waste of his
yeas, his energy and strength in reducing
that home from it's wild condition, rem
dered the mere technical right of action
against the company but little more than a
mockery. Years have elapsed since many
OF the grants have been made and other
years since the Withdrawals. Some
the entire line of their road, others frag-
mentary portions only and others again
none at all, but the withdrawal of the
lands were no less effective as barrier
against the settlers in the one case than in
the other, 1t mattered not what might be
his equities acquired by years of toll upon
what he believed to be a part of the national
domain, 1t was declared by the highest
judicial tribunal as eXpounded by the
highest law officers of the executive that a
withdrawal once made by competent
authority is legal and effective to exclude
all from Intrusion within it's limits.
THE MILLER CASE.
One such case where hardship and injus-
tice were about to be inflicted under the
law came under your observation. GuilfOrd
ed and claimed by the Northern Pacific
Railroad company to be within the limits
for withdrawal for indemnity purposes.
Some doubts arising as to the legality of
that withdrawal, the case was referred by
this department 10 the attorney general for
his opinion on the question of law. That
officer held that the withdrawal was legal
and that during it's existence Miller could
acquire no right or title to the tract claimed
by him and on which he lived. Whilst
recognizing the correctness of the law, you
saw the injustice Of the case so far as the
individual settler was affected and that
hundreds of others were similarly situated
who might and would be affected; and you
directed that such grants should be so ad-
minlStered by this department as, if DOS
sible, to protect those settlers from such
injustice, stating your belief that this can
bedone under the provision which declares
that these selections shall be made under
the direction of the secretary of the inter-
lor.' After years OF waiting congress has
failed to empower the department to make
the necessary surveys whereby some of
the grants might be adjusted and no i'm
midiate prospect of such surveys are in
sight, but a law passed March 8, 1887, ga,
U. S. 556) whereby the secretary OF the in
terror was directed to Immediately ad Just
each OF the railroad land grants made by
congress to aid in the constitution of rail-
roads, With an earnest desire to obey the
mandate OF congress to give to the corpora
tions their every right under the laws and
at the same time follow the directions given
by you to see that ample protection should
be extended to settlers and those seeking
to make settlement on the public lands "a
matter which had been SO long and so ut
terly OverShadOWed | entered upon
A MOST CAREFUL CONSIDERATION OF TIE
WHOLE SUBJECT
of the history and law relating to land
grants and concluded that if the depart
ment was clothed with authority to make
indemnity withdrawals, as had been done
in SO many instances, the exercise of that
authority was matter entirely within
sound discretion and not matter of legal
obligation in any respect; that the same
sound discretion which in the interest Of
the companies justified said Withdrawals
now demanded preemptOrily in the public
interest speedy revocation Of the same
and that the most effective way of expedit-
ing an adjustment OF the land grants and
doing exact justice to the companies,
guarding and promoting the interests of
the settlers also, was to permit the public
to enter !e I'M into competition with the compa-
withdrawn for indemnity purposes.
Accordingly on May %, 1857, with your
approval, rules We're laid upon the different
companies for whose benefit withdrawals
had been mace to show cause on certain
day why said withdrawals should not be
revoked. Some OF the companies failed to
show cause; others filed answers asserting
to the revocation until they had received
satisfaction of the grant either in full or as
far as possible. Others aSSented on cOndi-
ton that lands covered by selections al
ready made should be excepted from the
order of revocation and other companies
objected to The order of revocation as
illegal and violation of chartered rights.
Briefs were filed and oral arguments
accorded to the counsel of such companies
as desired to be heard. all of which were
fully and carefully considered, as was due
to the Importance of the question and the
magnitude of the interests involved, and on
pressed in decision rendered in the case
of the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad COM
pany, which by answer and argument
raised nearly all the objections, that had
been presented in part only by a number
of other companies. | send herewith copy
of the whole text of that opinion in which
those objections were answered seriatim.
TWO days later the orders withdrawing the
lands within the indemnity limits and re-
serving the same from settlement were re-
vOked and the lands restored to the public
domain and settlement, first in the
cases OF the TWO companies which had not
answered, second in those which answer
ing assented, the third in the cases of the
companies which set up defenses coming
within the rulings in the foregoing opinion
in the congressional grants to
THE FOLLOWING RAILROAD COMPANIES:
The Hastings & Dakota the St. Panl Il
Northern Pacific, the st. Paul, Minneapolis
u Manitoba, the st. Paul & Sioux City, the
Sioux City & st. Paul and the Winona u
st. Peter. 1t is provided that upon filing
the maps designating the routes of said
roads and branches, it shall be the duty of
the secretary of the interior to withdraw
from the market the lands embraced with
in the provisions of the act making the
grant. In consequence of this provision,
these roads were omitted from the orders
OF restoration. 1t will be seen from the
order passed In the Atlantic Il Pacific case,
and which was applied to the other cOm-
pantes, that whilst 1t was determined that
fha lAnla In nttaStipn ahnt,ll h.